updated 03:41 pm EST, Sat November 9, 2013

New HTC flagship could debut at CES

The rumored new HTC flagship could debut at the end of the first quarter of next year, according to a new report. Serial leaker @evleaks retweeted a report that the HTC M8 is set to launch on all four major U.S. carriers with an estimated window around the end of the quarter. That jibes with previous reports that the HTC One follow-up was imminent, though some had the device debuting before the end of this year.

The M8 is expected to follow in the footsteps of the HTC One, with HTC retaining the solid build quality and high-grade materials that earned wide acclaim from tech reviewers. Reportedly, the device has gone on to see strong sales, but HTC has still seen losses as it struggles to compete with the much larger Samsung.

Recently, photos have begun to emerge of components from the new device, seemingly verifying that it will retain the aluminum enclosure that marked the One. It also appears to have a circular cutout on its rear casing, which some believe will house a fingerprint sensor like that found on HTC's One Max.

Inside, the new device is expected to have a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor and 3GB of RAM, ensuring that it will be in the running among the fastest phones of 2014. It is also said to pack a 5.2-inch display, a jump from the One's 5-inch display. That screen is said to output at a resolution of 1920x1080.

Some observers have speculated that the device could debut ahead of the Mobile World Congress conference in Barcelona, as did its predecessor. Others believe HTC may attempt to steal the show at this year's Consumer Electronics Show.